


The Teardrop

by Galactic_Bartender



Category: Star Wars: The Clone Wars (2008) - All Media Types
Genre: Angst, Gen, Mention of Character Death, headcanon story
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-16
Updated: 2020-12-16
Packaged: 2021-03-11 00:01:07
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 640
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28105914
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Galactic_Bartender/pseuds/Galactic_Bartender
Summary: post umbara short story of tup and his tattoo
Relationships: CT-27-5555 | ARC-5555 | Fives/CT-5385 | Tup
Kudos: 10





	The Teardrop

A warrior does not grieve until the battle is won…

The young trooper came into the barracks and sat down on his bunk, looking down at his boots. He still hadn’t processed what had happened on Umbara, but as he glanced around the other troopers making their way in and going to their usual unspoken spots his eyes settled on the empty bunk above his. Normally, the barracks would be full of lighthearted chatter between vode. Telling jokes and picking on one another about things they did while out on their most recent campaign, comparing the numbers of droids each had taken down. 

Tonight was different. Silence filled every corner of the room. Most of the men had come straight in, laying down in their bunks trying to bury the nightmare they had just faced. It was too much for Tup. After tossing and turning for what seemed like hours, he sat up. Brushing the few stray hairs out of his eyes, he slipped on his boots and quietly made his way out of the room and down the long corridor of the ship. He walked into the mess hall and was surprised to see another unable to sleep.

“Fives.” he says, slowly walking up to the Arc trooper.

“Oh. Hey Tup. What’re you doin’ awake?” He asks, looking up from the datapad he was reading moments before.

Tup sat down across from him and sighs. “Just.. couldn’t sleep I guess. To..” he pauses.

Fives gives him a small smile. “I understand.. ”

The two troopers sat in silence for a moment. Fives looking back down at the reports he was reading. Tup mind wandered, thinking about Dogma. Where could he be right now? Were they taking him back to Coruscant? He could see Dogma’s face, sitting in front of a row of judges on trial. Guilty of shooting a general, yes. But getting in trouble for it? Pong Krell was a traitor after all. Traitors should be put in front of the firing squad. Dogma would agree. Should he have faith in the Republic? Faith in the Jedi? Would anyone step in and speak on behalf of Dogma? Or would he be put in front of the firing squad himself?

Or was he on his way back to Kamino? They were their property after all. Dogma had disobeyed orders… he shot a superior. A clone who could not obey was useless. Would they recondition him, given the circumstances of his crimes? Or would they just decommission him? Imagining Dogma strapped to a table in an all white room, waiting for the moment everything goes dark, like the planet where this all had started days before. 

There wasn’t going to be any justice for the brothers on Umbara.

For Dogma

Or Geonosis.

Or any other battle where they had risked their lives for the republic. 

They were just there to serve. Good soldiers follow orders.

“You okay kid?” 

Tup shakes his head, taking him back to the present. He feels something wet slowly glide down his cheek. “Yeah I’m just-” He stops, taking a steady breath.

Fives nods his head. “I understand. Tup,” He sets his datapad down on the table before continuing. “Its okay to feel the way you do. Crying is normal, even for us clones. When my brother Echo was taken from me I-.” he clenched his fists up. 

“I cry for all of our fallen vode everyday.” Tup responds quietly, pointing to the tattoo under his eye. “This one,” he gestures to the small tear trail making its way down his cheek. “This one is for us, left behind to continue this nightmare.” He looks up at Fives. “The nightmares for them are over.”

Another few moments of silence pass between the two of them before Fives finally speaks.

“What are we fighting for then?”

“Our brothers.”


End file.
